| Abstract: |
The Cleveland Council on Soviet Anti-Semitism (CCSA) was a volunteer organization whose goals were to assist Soviet Jews to
emigrate, to inform the American public about Jewish activities in the Soviet Union, and to monitor anti-Semitism in the USSR.
The CCSA, the first organization of its kind in the world, was established in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1963 through the efforts
of NASA scientists Louis Rosenblum and Abe Silverstein, Veterans Administration Hospital psychologist Herbert Caron, and Rabbi
Daniel Litt. The four men, members of Beth Israel The West Temple, were supported by the congregation which provided volunteer
workers and office space for the CCSA. The CCSA sought to educate the public regarding the plight of Soviet Jews at a time
when the problem was not generally recognized. The Council organized letter writing campaigns to government officials, sponsored
rallies and protests, corresponded with Soviet Jews, and lobbied Congress and the President in an effort to link economic
aid to the Soviet Union to the issue of human rights. Between 1964 and 1969 the CCSA produced a handbook for community activity,
created a motion picture and slide show depicting the problem of Soviet Jewry, and published Spotlight, the nation's first
newsletter on Soviet Jews. By 1965, the CCSA counted 600 members. Its success was recognized nationally and it became a model
for other local groups. By 1969, five other councils had been established and in February 1970 the six organizations joined
to create the Union of Councils for Soviet Jews (UCSJ) to share information and to strengthen the movement nationally. In
1966, the Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland became the first Federation in the U.S. to allocate funds for this issue
by providing funds for the CCSA's educational activities. The collection consists of approximately 150 black and white
and color photographs depicting CCSA members, Soviet Jews, CCSA events, and views of the Soviet Union.
|